RE: "Live Looping"

["hazard factor" <artists@hazardfactor.com>]

 This has always been a huge problem for all types of 'fringe' artists. How
do you promote yourself to people who identify what you are by something
they may have heard? Not just to a potential audience but to someone who 
may
book you? People who book coffeehouses usually deal with singer-songwriter
types. Making up a word doesn't seem to work. It is hard to say to them 'I
call my music SPAMBIENT', because the next question is 'What is that?'. 
Looping is used in all types of music, and it is easy to draw similarities
between how individuals use their looping devices. I am afraid defining the
music as 'looping' doesn't tell the average MTV/ClearChannel listener
anything about what they are about to hear. I have to realize that where I
am (Florida, US), there are certain buzzwords that will automatically close
the ears of most people. If I tell one of my metal-headed students to come
to my show, and I say 'classical', 'jazz', 'ambient', etc- well, anything
except the word 'metal', the door has already been closed. I think this
isn't unique- it is common for the average music consumer. 

Defining what *you* do is the hard part. For me, I usually tailor my
response to the venue. If it is a jam band festival, hey, I'll call my band
a jam band. If it is an art festival, I might call what I do 'contemporary
classical'...as a solo guitarist that loops, its not a big stretch to call
it that, even if it is improvised. I am careful, however, of making the
right choices- I am not going to try to get a gig at a bluegrass festival,
or at a jazz festival, even though much of what I do is improvised. Hell, 
my
band got accepted to play at a prog festival in another state, because the
organizers heard my music and decided it was 'prog enough'...cool, although
I thought it was a long shot. I hate feeling like I am pushing my music on
unwilling people sometimes. 

As far as setting your gear up in a festival atmosphere, it just comes from
doing it. Playing a lot locally and dragging your gear out really is a test
to see if you need to bring all the speakers out so you can be in 10.1
surround sound. This goes for any gear. Get to know it so if (and when)
something goes wrong, you can fix it within a minute with a smile on your
face. 

Dave Eichenberger 
http://www.hazardfactor.com

> 
> 1. Someone needs to come up with a definition of the 
> aesthetics and experience from an audience perspective.
>